MLB One-shots
by LixaDeiton
Summary: From drabbles to two-shots, this story is only starting out, but comes as quick as aspiration and inspiration does, so enjoy, this bundle of possible crack (read: definite). Latest chapter: Nath is a troubled little tomato. Who knows how it will end up for him? Warning: Helluva depressing one shot.
1. Mother knows best?

Mother… knows best?

In which Marinette's mother, Sabine, has impeccable timing and Ladybug forgot to close the trap door; again.

Sabine Dupain-Cheng was a diligent and loving woman, known for her grace and intelligence, but even this experienced mother with a troubled teen never expected her shy little girl to be what she was.

As the woman finished up the last batch of golden pastries for an order the following day, she indulged in the sweet scent of her bakery. Her husband, Tom, had hit the hay a little earlier than his wife, as she had the specialty with the cinnamon and cream dessert; a special recipe only known to their bakery.

The night was alit with Parisian lights and there was something mysterious, magical and meaningful in the air that night. A tinge of danger hung in the air though as an Akuma raged outside in the city. She knew Ladybug and Chat Noir had it under control, but her motherly instincts always led her to believe her daughter would get hurt, even if she was currently tucked in her bed…

Sabine heaved a heavy sigh and sprinkled the last bit of cinnamon over the pastry dish, placing it in the extremely large fridge behind her. When that was done, she stretched her arms above her head, relaxing her muscles.

Firstly she would go check on her daughter and then she would return to bed.

She climbed up the long flight of stairs with heavy feet, opened up the trap door and peered inside. Her eyes immediately darted to the bed, but what remained there was no one. She glanced to the desk, to see if her daughter had possible fallen asleep while working. She wasn't there either.

The window was opened.

Sabine gasped quietly as a lone figure swept into the room, disrupting the curtains like a lone wind in the night.

Ladybug, Paris' favourite heroine stood in _her_ daughter's room!

Hero or not, that was breaking and entering and Sabine would not stand for it. She slipped into the room as quietly as a mouse, as to not alarm the superhero of her presence.

Then, Ladybug exclaimed with an exhausted sigh, "Tikki, revert me!"

A flash of red enveloped the girl and Ladybug was replaced with Marinette. Just like her mother, the girl stretched her arms above her head, groaning at the stiff muscles.

Sabine gasped, torso visible through the trap door. Marinette snapped her head to the direction of her mother, just as she exclaimed her daughter's name.

"You… you're Ladybug!"

Marinette was frozen in shock, just like her mother, gaping at the older woman.

"Mom… I … I can explain."

Sabine Dupain-Cheng stared at the red kwami.

So tiny!

"Do you want another cookie, sweetie?" she asked the kwami. The kwami's already large blue eyes stretched even wider. She nodded eagerly, and said, "The vanilla ones, please!"

Sabine gracefully handed the fairy a cookie and she gracefully started nibbling on her second snack.

Then her eyes locked with her daughter's.

"Marinette."

"Mom."

"Marinette."

"Mom."

"This can go on forever. Was that what you wanted?"

"Mom."

"Marinette."

"Okay, okay, I'll talk." Marinette conceded. She gestured to Tikki. "This is Tikki."

Past midnight conversations with her daughter went nothing like Sabine expected. Especially since the teen was being very secretive and stubborn, considering there was a red fairy in the kitchen.

"I'm sorry I never told you, mom."

"That you're Ladybug! This is a big deal, sweetie!"

"I know, I know, but so far you're the first I've told. Not even Chat has the vaguest idea of who I am."

Meanwhile Adrien sneezed in his mansion.

"Tell me you're not getting sick!" Plagg groaned.

"I'm your mother."

"I know and I love you for that, but could you please keep this a secret, mom?"

Sabine pondered the situation for a second, eyes locked on the plate of cookies instead of her daughter. A wave of courage overwhelmed Marinette and she clasped her hands over her mother's. Her voice was just above a whisper when she continued.

"If it's any consolation, mother knows best, right?"

Sabine sighed. "Just don't keep anything from me in the future, alright?"

Marinette nodded. "Deal."

The next morning, a vibrant Sunday, a shriek of maniacal laughter echoed through the streets of Paris. Marinette and her mother shared a look, and just like that her daughter fled the bakery.

"Where is she going?" Tom demanded, but his wife only smiled.

"To do something great. Now where are those balls of dough I set out last Friday?"


	2. Some things never changed

Change was inevitable.

Three years have passed since Ladybug and Chat Noir defeated their first akumatized villain; Stoneheart.

Three years since Marinette stumbled on a rooftop, clumsily defeating a villain as Ladybug, whereas Chat Noir confidently stood by her side.

Three years since Tikki and Plagg became friends with their charges.

Three years since Adrien Agreste walked into the same class as Marinette Dupain-Cheng and tried to help her out from Chloé's wrath.

Three years…

Since then, Hawk Moth has not yet been captured, but nearing their eighteenth birthday and the predictions from Master Fu, they had their hopes high. Not only had they drastically improved their fighting skills (with Chat Noir now having the body of his alter ego and Ladybug far more popular with the men at school with her new… assets), but their team had also expanded.

Volpina and two others joined the team, creating a total of five. Chat and Ladybug were still partners in crime and co-captains, per se, on the team.

A miraculous group of five became one, training at least one hour a day (how they managed to fit it into their schedules, none of them knew) and seven days a week. They worked as a team, fought villains on a near daily basis and were stronger than ever before. Paris was grateful and even made it blatantly obvious with fan-clubs and fans themselves grew in numbers.

In France they already had a total of 8 statues erected, had done at least 20 interviews (most of them for the Ladyblog) and Ladybug had almost as much authority as the mayor. _All within one year_.

They loved their jobs; all of them - even their youngest player on the team – Jade, whom was just 14 years old.

As this story starts, they were running after another victim, this one being one of the biggest, most vicious of them all so far. A wrestler gone rogue turned into a beast of 60 meters high, trampling the citizens of Paris.

Well, to be more specific, Volpina and Jade Turtle were chasing the beast. Queen Bee and Chat Noir, an unlikely pair, were settling for keeping the citizens of France out of danger's path while Ladybug was trying to get this beast to move away from the buildings. Ladybug was already heavily injured, having been thrown across unimaginable lengths, but remained the fastest, except for Chat who had also been injured so badly that he couldn't run. Those two were always the ones who got hurt first, not that they complained. It was their job to keep everyone safe – especially their team.

Ladybug yo-yo-ed herself across Paris swiftly, and when she finally reached the Eiffel Tower on higher ground than the beast, she was able to summon her last resort.

"Lucky Charm!"

What she got in return was once again, at first sight, useless. It was a blunt, wooden sword, almost looking like a sword.

Ladybug glanced around in hope of an answer and found it (alongside a lot of spit to the face) and grinned triumphantly. Of course! It was so simple! There was something stuck in its teeth! Volpina had noticed it at the beginning of the fight.

Okay, maybe it wasn't so simple.

Ladybug grimaced the sight of the beast's jaws. The teeth were at least the size of Chat and they were sharper than Queen Bee's weapon collection combined.

 _Sacrifices will be made_ …

She never told him.

 _It will never be easy, but you must know_.

It would have to happen. Someday. Just not today.

Ladybug swung the yo-yo to the top of the beast's head, allowing it the swing around one of the horns and she followed the swing, aiming for its mouth when it made a guttural roar.

She landed safely on the tongue. Slick landing, but the sword lodged itself into the inner gums, and once again the beast roared in pain.

Ladybug pulled the sword out and stabbed it through the gap where the alleged gem was stuck in. The gem fell out of the mouth and Ladybug jumped out with it. It fell to the bottom of the Eiffel Tower, shattering into a billion pieces…

… and a little butterfly flew out.

The sky was glowing red and the evening that came with it was nostalgic. Paris was restored to its former glory, while the team of heroes took that sunset as a moment to relax a little bit.

As the five of them surveyed the city with the familiar relief of a successful mission.

Slowly the team dispersed, until only Chat Noir and Ladybug remained.

"I must say, my Lady, your performance today was purr-fect!"

He always saved the puns for her.

"Nearly miraculous!" Ladybug quipped.

Chat Noir chuckled, his green orbs catching her beautiful, blue-bottle eyes. After all those years, he still remained ridiculously in love with her. He knew it was one-sided and no matter how much it hurt, he couldn't stop thinking about her.

"What're you staring at, Tom-Cat?" Ladybug asked; eyes curious.

Chat snapped out of his reverie, his cheeky grin never leaving his face. "Nothing. It's just that this lighting… it makes you look so… radiant."

"You're oddly flattering this evening. More so than usual."

Ladybug noticed that he was staring at her lips and her breathing hitched. His green eyes looked so… familiar… welcoming…

There were so many adjectives she could list, but she was too lost to even think.

"So many things have changed," Chat whispered; his far deeper voice now husky.

"What do you mean?"

Chat shrugged nonchalantly. "Everything has changed. You are… so much more beautiful, stronger and much, much more confident than you ever were before. Your smile… is so much bigger, your IQ has increased significantly…"

"Your puns have decreased," Ladybug murmured sadly.

Chat continued nonetheless. "We're both stronger, we have a very strong team… you'd be surprised… Jade doesn't have a dad. She let it slip the other day, calling me her…" His tone suddenly softened, slipping into a phase of thought suddenly.

"Wow," Ladybug murmured, surprised by Chat's solemn tone.

"But… you know what hasn't changed? It's something… that never changes."

"You're also oddly poetic, Kitty Cat," Ladybug murmured. Their voices barely stretched to the other one, despite the close proximity.

"I'm sorry, Bugaboo… I shouldn't…"

Ladybug grasped Chat's bicep, almost urging him to continue. "Chat, so being so… chatty. Tell me what's on your mind."

"Bugaboo… Ladybug… My lady… As selfish as it may sound and how bitter it seems coming from a stray cat to one of nobility in the full sense of the word… Je t'aime, madamoiselle. From the beginning."

Silence struck the Parisian night. The muggy air around the couple seemed impossible to breathe in, so Chat leaned in for a little kiss of life.

It was just a peck at first, but one kiss wasn't enough for either of the young adults. A nudge in the right direction allowed a little more. Multiple beeps later, noticed by neither of them, Adrien and Marinette indulged in the touch of their loved ones. Without hiding from each other, without a mask… just the two of them.

Adrien pulled away for a second, to get some air, but he smirked, rather than gasped in shock. He always knew that Marinette was his lady behind the spotted mask.

Some things just never changed.


	3. Chat Noir Snr Part 1

Adrien glared at his kwami.

Plagg glared back at him.

Then that stupid smug smile cracked across the flying cat's face.

"C'moooooonnn! Adrien! It is right there!" the kwami whined, his tiny little paws waving exaggeratingly in the air, in the direction of the leather-bound book which had the name of his grandfather on it.

Adrien had never met his grandfather, mainly because he died way before he was born, apparently during the Second World War. He had tried to gain access to one of the Jewish refugee camps, but had been bombed with the rest of them. The details were blurry and his father refused to talk about his mother's father, having the topic being too close for comfort.

Right now, just like before the Volpina incident, Plagg was insisting he take something from his father. This time though, it was incredibly, to the point of being ridiculously easy. The book was just lying there – on the table in Gabriel Agreste's office. Adrien was extremely sceptical. If it was that easy, it never meant good news. Still, with the kwami's consistent taunts and possibly future mockery for being a scaredy cat, Adrien could not resist. He could always return it later, right?

His arm twitched in anticipation, green eyes twinkling with secret delight and nerves a fray.

Adrien grabbed the book and fled the office, his kwami following behind, cackling like the sneaky bastard he truly was. Book bag flying behind him, hair wild, he shoved the book to the inside of his jacket. He was already late for school as it was, and on the very day The Gorilla took his vacation. With those thoughts in his head, Adrien ran like the speed of light out of his house.

Plagg had regrettably taken refuge inside the book bag, realising too late that it was bumpy ride. Nearing one of the final corners, Adrien saw Marinette in an equal rush as him. A quirky smile stretched across Adrien's face and he got into pace with Marinette.

"Hey, Mari. Why in such a rush?"

Marinette scoffed, her face growing extremely red. "We're going to be late, silly."

"Race ya!" The cheeky grin almost broke his face and Marinette was reminded how much he sometimes looked like Chat Noir. With that said, Adrien rushed forward into a sprint, forcing Marinette to follow behind in an equal pace.

As the two rushed, Marinette felt a feeling of euphoria, a timeless brush of air. It was like chasing Chat Noir during their patrols, both giddy from adrenaline and those priceless (even if she won't admit it) jokes making her laugh loudly.

Her thoughts unfortunately caused a slow in her step and as she crossed the road, she felt arms pull her out of the way, her body being pulled into a warm chest.

"Careful!" Adrien quipped. "Those cars wait for no one."

Instead of being flustered, (she was internally screaming though) she just said her thanks. Behind them the school bell rang.

"Let's get to class.

* * *

November 17, 1939

 _Hawkmoth is a bastard. A cruel, twisted piece of_ scheisse _. As we all fight, begging for freedom from our Führer's cruel reign, Hawkmoth decides to make this world a darker place than it already is. Villain after villain seems to pop out of nowhere. It has gotten to the point where I think I may break. Hitler is already driving us nuts – now all we need is more suffering._

 _Ladybug and I haven't rested properly in days. I can feel my muscles starting to give in and my brain is unfocused. Plagg is forced to eat mouldy cheese, as it is the only thing I can find for him. This leaves him to complain ever more. Can he not for at least one minute?_

 _Excuse me for a minute, Jade is outside my window._

 _Felix "Chat Noir" Bastille_

* * *

Adrien stared in shock at the page for a second. This belonged to the previous Chat Noir? Was he possibly still alive? Only way to find out and that was to continue reading.

* * *

November 17, 1939 11:30 P.M

 _It's late. Ladybug fell ill. The latest Akuma since I last wrote was a pathetic one. It's surprising how jealous young boys can be when it comes to impressing their seniors. So many naïve men, hardly to be even considered that. I hope that to whoever reads this, you believe that you're a man, if not, at least a decent lady, depending on gender._

 _I came to a shocking today. It's heart-wrenching, terrifying and pitiful at the same time._

 _I have fallen for my Lady._

 _There's something about her sweet blue eyes, dashing blonde hair and charismatic personality that just lures me in. I hunker for her love, her touch. Such an enigma, just out of reach. If I could, I would tell her. Unfortunately I am too terrified to do such in fear that she may reject me at some point in her life. As this makes no sense to my brain, it's possibly because she had rejected my attempts at wooing her multiple times in the past._

 _In other news, the girl who does the sewing down street has become quite close friends with me, and despite her strange ways of communicating, I've grown quite attached to the girl. She's uncharacteristically shy, but endearing in such._

 _I hope we can remain friends for as long as possible._

 _My roommate has become suspicious, but I suppose he's gotten used to my journalistic endeavours. It's thrilling to write from a third person's point of view on my own missions. Kryzler seems to believe otherwise. He feels as if most of my reports have been plagiarised, but from whom can I plagiarize when nobody else is willing to write about the Akuma attacks except me?_

 _I need to go check on Ladybug's state of being. A friend of hers is keeping me updated. Good riddance._

 _Chat Noir, Felix Bastille, Brother, Son, Lover_

* * *

This… Felix guy was very stoic, Adrien realised. And he loved Ladybug just as him! It enthralled Adrien to the brink. How much were the previous Chat Noirs alike to him?

His thoughts were interrupted when a teacher yelled at him for being distracted.

"Agreste, what is the formula for blue vitriol?"

Without hesitation and without looking up from the book, Adrien answered. "Copper sulphate as the chemical name, thus CuSo4 being the formula."

The teacher blinked in surprise and Adrien continued his read. The next entry was a week later.

* * *

November 25, 1939

 _It's gotten extremely cold. I'm going to bed. Just an entry to remind myself that I am still alive. Jade Turtle is coming back later. Plagg has gone into near hibernation because of the cold. He has trouble staying warm in the winter. I might just join him. There has been two Akuma attacks in the last week._

 _Felix Bastille, exhausted_

* * *

Adrien frowned at the short entry. Plagg had trouble staying warm? He took note of that for when winter came.

Adrien was about to read one, but the bell rang. He shut the book, ready to leave for the day.

* * *

I'll probably continue this as a few-shot, loosely connected chapters. It would probably lead to a reveal, so stay tuned! And OMG I love this character, Felix. I know he was supposed to be Chat Noir in the original, but he's so interesting for fanfiction use!


	4. Fire Fox Part 1

Summary: Nathanael rarely hoped for a peaceful day, but could he have had at least not have had a mild concussion on his first day as a hero?

A/N: Okay, so I absolutely love Nathanael as a character and can totally see him as the bearer of the fox miraculous, so here's my bundle of reveals and bleh be bleh! So enjoy!

Warning: Mild swearing, injuries, mentions of loss of bodily fluids

XxXxXxX

When he was a little boy, there was nothing more he wanted than to tell a story. At night when his parents tucked him into bed, they wouldn't be the one rambling on about the princess and her valiant knights, no; he would find enjoyment out of telling tales of the dancing moon or the midnight maiden who visited the world when someone took roads at night. He had such an imagination; his parents lived for his tales. So, when he found a skill with a paintbrush, they immediately went to find him the perfect set. His first painting, that of a colourful fox, still hung in the living room.

Nathanael, like many nights before, was still in his bedroom, working tirelessly on his painting of Ladybug. It was of her based on a picture taken at a meeting with the mayor as she and Chat Noir waved on entrance. It was mostly focused on her, but the shadowy outline of Chat Noir could be seen behind her.

The people were painted as that of a galaxy pattern, shadowy, while Mari - no, Ladybug – was painted in vibrant colours, the red of her suit sharply contrasting with the darkness of the rest of the painting. Her smile, her gentle, beautiful smile, screamed for attention and when the last detail of her plump cherry lips were added with a colourless shine, Nathanael sat back in his chair, his back complaining in exhaustion.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng… Ladybug… you are so alike, I do not understand why nobody sees the real you behind the mask. Your eyes, your smile… it's all there. I paint it every day, I see it all the time… but now, who's Chat Noir?"

Nathanael's mumbling went unheard as it lapsed over the chime of the grandfather's clock in the living room below. 2 A.M.

He stretched his arms above his head, his exhaustion overwhelming him momentarily. He yawned, lugging himself out of his chair. With finesse he handled the cloth on the back of his chair, draping it over the mostly dry painting.

With that done, he collapsed onto his bed; t-shirt, skinny jeans and sneakers.

XxXxX

He was late. He was late. He WAS SOOOOO LATE!

In a blind rush, Nathanael grabbed his writing utensils for school from his desk. He had five minutes to get to school, so he shoved everything in, grabbed the painting and RAN! LIKE THAT DAMN AKUMA FROM YESTERDAY!

A giant bunny. I kid you not.

There was no time for getting properly dressed, so he just grabbed his jacket and sneakers, not even bothering with his jacket as he just kept it over his shoulders.

In his rush to school, just as he was about to enter, an old man in a Hawaiian t-shirt, tripped. Nathanael's heart stopped for a second and he rushed to the old man in aid. He managed to scratch his jeans up even further, but he barely focused on that.

"Hello, sir. Do you need any help?" he asked politely. He was left with less than a minute to get to class.

"Thank you kind man," he said, grinning sagely as Nathanael helped him up. He leaned over to get the old man's cane, just as the bell rang.

When he was stable on his feet, Nathanael greeted him hastily and ran like the wind once more.

The old man watched in amusement, pondering to himself. "He is very fast. Very, very fast. Imaginative and speedy. Perfect, I'd say."

XxXxX

First Nathanael had to get to the main hall to have his painting settled with the rest of the art pieces. Their art teacher greeted him with pride, ushering him over to where the rest of his paintings stood. He was one of this school's assets in the art department and Nathanael prided himself over it.

"Nathan, m'boy! So? Where is it? The painting, c'mon boy. I gave you homeroom off, but that's as far as Ma'am Bustier would allow! Ah, what a woman!" his teacher kept on rambling as Nathanael carefully handled the painting, pleased to see that the canvas and the canvas frame was still intact and that none of the paintjob had been damaged.  
"Oh, boy, this is lovely!" his art teacher exclaimed. "I love the contrast of colour, but Miss Ladybug's features look a little off to me…"

"Yeah, well, I mostly had to work on memory. It wasn't all that easy," Nathanael admitted defensively.

"It's all well. It looks lovely; now get on to class," the teacher chastised lightly and Nathanael ran. Again.

As he was about to open the door mid run, someone else opened it, causing him to trip his way in, books flying out of his bag.

"Omigosh! Nathanael! Are you okay!?" Marinette squealed worriedly, crouching down to his level.

"Mmm fine. Ow…"

He managed to ignore Chloé's snobbish laugh and snide remark about his clumsiness when Marinette helped him up with a sweet smile, much the same way he helped the older man earlier that morning. From there on the day turned out for the better. On his way to his desk, Adrien high fived him, congratulating him on getting in the art contest and Juleka and Rose offered similar compliments. Marinette disappeared out the door and the teacher was nowhere to be seen.

"Let the day begin!"

XxXxX

Nathanael was attacked in the bathroom.

Now, don't get the wrong idea, in fact the thing that attacked him could have been no larger than his hand, but then again he did have abnormally large hands…

Back to the point!

A blur of orange attacked him, squealing promptly about fish or something…

Needless to say Adrien who had followed him into the bathroom at a bad timing had a reason to be concerned.

"Um, Nathanael? Are you alright?"

"Yeah! I am fine!" he squeaked before realising his mistake, correcting himself promptly with a cough and a fake deep voice. "Yeah, I'm fine… I just… um… a spider fell on my head. It's dead now."

 _A spider fell on his head? Seriously?_

"Um," Adrien murmured awkwardly, unsure of what to say, "Don't die?"

Nathanael chuckled awkwardly; suddenly extremely glad that he couldn't be seen. "On it."

Nathanael stayed quiet until he heard the tell-tale sign of the door closing and he turned to the strangely orange thing floating thing.

"What... the... what are you?" Nathanael whispered harshly, hiding his terror in order to avoid death. What? He didn't know what this thing was – for all he knew it could detect his fear and kill him.

No, Nathanael was not insane. He was just a lovable idiot.

"My name is Fayy!" it squealed adorably and Nathanael had to soften at the sight as it buzzed around his head like a little kid.

"I am… I am a... a kuh-wami!" It squealed, its bug eyes going wide. It had a cute orange body in the shape of what seemed to be a cartoon fox with a fluffy tail dipped in white.

"Uh… a what?" Nathanael breathily asked with eyes wide at the creature's innocent behaviour.

"Ah, a kwami! I'm one of those things that give Ladybug and Chat Noir their powers! I'm the fox miraculous and you have been chosen to be the new Volpina, or Volpin, whichever you prefer."

Nathanael fainted.

XxXxX

When art class started and Nathanael wasn't there, his art teacher momentarily dismissed it, but even Marinette and Adrien were early, so he got concerned. Nevertheless he waited for his star pupil to turn up, but after class was in session for fifteen minutes already and his students were getting restless, he said, "Does anybody know where Nathanael is?"

Several students looked up at him warily. Only Marinette had noticed his absence, but considering she was pretty much the only one from his homeroom class that year in his art class, that was fairly normal.

She raised her hand warily. "He never signed out, sir. I think he's still at school and the likelihood that he'd cut class…"

"Is zero, I am aware," the teacher muttered to mostly himself. He pushed himself off of the board and said to Adrien, "You go and look for him. Take someone with if you have to."

Adrien nodded and started leaving while Marinette followed him, her little bag snug around her shoulder, with Tikki buzzing nervously around inside.

He glanced around in surprise when Marinette followed him outside.

"Nathanael is a good friend. I need to know if he's okay," Marinette insisted to Adrien who didn't say anything, but his surprise probably gave him away.

"Oh, no I get it. Where do you think he could be?"

"We'll check the boy's bathroom and then the library. Maybe he fell asleep there…"

"The bathroom!" Adrien snapped his fingers when he realised that was the last place he had seen the redhead. "Come on! I think I know where he is!"

So the two of them rushed to the direction of the bathroom; Adrien slipping into the men's room while Marinette waited outside. She heard a choked gasp and a door being kicked down.

"Adrien! Is he there?"

"Oh, he is here alright and he unconscious!"

"What?"

Within seconds Adrien came out of the men's room with Nathanael's lanky figure in his arms. "I think he has a concussion. I'll take him to the nurse's office. Can you quickly go get his school bag? It's somewhere near the busted door," Adrien admitted sheepishly, but before Marinette had time to respond, he had run off to the direction of the nurse's office. Marinette sucked in her squeamishness and ran into the bathroom, got Nathanael's book bag and left, trying desperately to ignore the splintered door right next to it. She headed off to the nurse's office, catching up with Adrien on the way.

"There's no blood, at least," Adrien supplied rather unhelpfully. Marinette could see that!

"I wonder what happened," Marinette mumbled to herself, finding herself standing outside the nurse's office. She nudged the door open, finding the nurse behind her desk and three open beds behind her.

"Oh, Marinette, what brings you here?" she asked pleasantly.

Adrien then decided to step in with Nathanael's body and chaos broke out. In a flurry the nurse led him to place Nathanael on the nearest bed and Marinette and Adrien were sent out of the room. Out there, they caught their breath.

"You wait here," Adrien said softly, "I'll go get our bags." With that he planted a soft kiss on the crease on Marinette's forehead and she blushed sweetly as her boyfriend left. She sat down on the chair outside the office, exhaustion seeping in. She had been so worried about her friend, but now that she was alone, she could relax, knowing that Nathanael was in good hands. Besides, why would Adrien, her boyfriend of one month act so casually if he wasn't convinced that Nathanael was fine? Adrien had an acute sense of instinct and so far, he showed nothing out of the ordinary. Plagg was buzzing around her head and Tikki was let out of the pouch by Marinette so that the two could converse.

"I sense Fayy, Tikki," Plagg exclaimed immediately.

"Do you think he fainted because of that?"

"Probably. The kid's a wimp! Worse than Adrien was at some point!"

"Plagg," Marinette chastised. While she knew that Master Fu had recently spoken of recruiting new teammates, she did not want to jump to conclusions yet.

"Marinette's right. We don't know if Master Fu chose Nathanael or not. For all we know he could have fainted for a completely different reason!"

XxXxX

Nathanael groaned as he was torn from his sleep. His body felt heavy and –

A wave of nausea overcame him and he twisted his body that felt like lead, puking into a bucket at the side of his bed. His mother came in when she heard his dry hacking and Nathanael was surprised to see her. He thought she was still at work, but there she was, rubbing his back, looking at him with a face full of worry.

"Are you alright sweetie?" she asked consolingly when he managed to fall back and breathe properly, trying to get over the splitting headache he was suffering from.

"What happened?"

"A few friends found you in the boy's bathroom passed out. The nurse said you might have a concussion, so stay in bed."

"No, the art show… it's…"

"No, Nathanael. You will stay in bed even if it's the last thing you do!"

"Gee, thanks mom, plan my funeral, will you?" Nathanael teased, joking dryly.

"On it. Now, the two who found you would like to see you. Oh, and Juleka, Rose and Rupert send their regards. They are still at school, right now."

Nathanael nodded tiredly. When his mother left, Adrien and Marinette came in, looking too cheerful for the dark drapes of his room.

Adrien closed the door behind him and for some reason Marinette looked like she was hiding something behind her back.

"So, Fire Fox, huh? Or are you going to play it safe and go for Volpin?" Adrien asked in a teasing tone that nearly sent Nathanael jolting up in shock, but the nausea and the splitting headache prevented him from doing so.

With that said, Adrien held out a necklace with an orange pendant in the shape of either a fox tail or a teardrop and from behind Marinette the kwami, Fayy, came flying out, tackling his chest.

His hand went to catch the kwami whom only snuggled deeper into his hoodie.

"Welcome to the Miraculous team. It looks like you're our first recruit. I'm Chat Noir and this is Ladybug. Now, are you ready for an art show, you sly fox?"

Adrien had a shit eating grin only Chat Noir could truly muster and Marinette wore a look of pride, now making her one with Ladybug.

Nathanael was done for.


	5. Terrace kiss

A quick drabble inspired by many a tumblr post. Alya comes up Marinette's room, only to find her best friend locking lips with Chat Noir.

A little MariChat fluff and Alya freaking out for your enjoyment.

Marinette giggled giddily. She was happily wrapped up in her boyfriend's arms, out on her terrace, overlooking the city's lights. She wanted nothing more.

Meanwhile, Chat was rather looking at her.

"Princess," he said, breaking the silence with his whisper. Marinette glanced up curiously at him, listening for his next words. "I best am going. How about a goodnight's kiss?"

The smirk on his lips nearly left Marinette retorting, but how could she resist.

She granted his wish, only to have him respond with twice as much vigour. She could hardly contain herself as a moan escaped her numb lips, a purr resounding in response.

Both were quite lost in their own world, so neither heard the trap door open and –

"MARINETTE!?"

Well, darn.


	6. Hawkmoth

"THAT'S IT!" Hawkmoth exclaimed to his kwami, Nooroo, who was casually sitting on his shoulder, nibbling on a strawberry.

"What is it master?" the Kwami asked between small bites. Nooroo was rather bored with Hawkmoth's odd outbursts of – "Gonna make an akuma now! Wings open, Nooroo!" – so of course his interest was piqued when his master continued with a completely different phrase.

"MY SHIP WON'T SAIL! Gosh dammit, LadyNoir, just fall in love already!"

Nooroo stared at Hawkmoth.

Hawkmoth stared back.

Nooroo flew away to go eat in peace.

Sheesh, why were all the Hawkmoths insane?

X***X

"NOOROO! I HAD AN IDEA!" Hawkmoth exclaimed dramatically, while marching into his evil lair.

"What is it, master?" the kwami asked obediently.

"You know that weird gay guy on television that ships everyone? Yeah, I'm gonna akumatize him!"

"How are you going to do that? You know you can only akumatize victims who suffer terrible emotions," the kwami deadpanned.

"Oh, yeah, right. Umm… I can pretend to be Gabriel and insult his fashion sense!"

"HAWKMOTH, STOP TRYING TO BE YOUR BROTHER!"

"I just want what is best for my nephew," Hawkmoth announced with an uncharacteristic pout.

"Oh, look, the weird gay guy just got fired," Nooroo deadpanned, hoping it would distract his insane master.

"Yay!"

Mon dieu.

X***X

"I AM CUPID BOY!" the akuma screeched in the middle of Paris. "AND THIS IS PARIS! THE CITY OF LOVE! I WILL MAKE EVERYONE FALL IN LOVE!"

Ladybug facepalmed. Was it just her, or were the villains getting more and more ridiculous with each akuma?

"Nah, sorry, bud, but this kitten already has his lovebug!"

"Chat, now is not the time!"

"I only speak the truth!"

X***X

"JUST KISS HIM ALREADY, LADYBUG!"

X***X

"Ok, yes, got it Hawkie," Cupid Boy said after the interruption from Hawkmoth and then aimed his arrow at Ladybug.

Like a snare was set loose, the arrow flew and hit its intended target, but Ladybug's attempts at dodging it, managed to land her in front of Chloé Bourgeouis (How the actual heck do you spell her surname?).

The magic of the arrow was taking effect and Ladybug found herself entranced at the sight in front of her.

Such sparkling eyes, beautiful, luscious blonde hair…

"Chloé! My love!" Ladybug exclaimed and tackled her part-time nemesis in a hug. Chloé found it really awkward and Alya was freaking out behind her camera a few meters away.

Chat Noir fainted.

X***X

"This is so not working out for me," Hawkmoth mumbled as the tears streamed down his face.

Nooroo only sighed inside his head _. I told you so_ ….


	7. Fatigued Fox

**As an avid Miraculous Ladybug fan, I believe that ZagToons is 1) wasting their talent by making Alya the Fox Miraculous holder, 2) the second season is (excuse my French) going to be shit. I am very disappointed in the results. Honestly, if it were up to me, I'd rather wait a year longer if it meant a better second season.**

 **I personally Nathanael would be a far better choice and I believe that he's a largely underrated character by the hands of the fans and Zag itself. He has a brilliant talent for art, he has the skills to manipulate his emotions – honestly he's been through hell, but he never cried – and he is just generally kind. He is defiant and a powerful character. Honestly, I was livid when I realised Marinette skipped over him in the Webisode (The one titled "Marinette's Birthday" if you want to go check it out.)**

 **Now, this chapter is inspired by a statement I read while doing research for a project on Van Gogh – something along the lines of "the romanticized ideals of the tortured artist" and it immediately reminded me of Nath.**

 **Warning: mentions of / attempted suicide, extreme angst, loneliness, terrible language and excessive use of the f-bomb**

* * *

He was so beaten, broken and tired…

So very tired.

Nathanael slugged his feet up the stairs of his room, fatigue rushing over him and weighing him down. Tears were rolling down his face in torrents, but he barely thought anything of it.

It had been his birthday that day and he got akumatized. His long-time crush had rejected him and worked against him. Nathanael did not understand why he remembered his akumatization, but he was too tired and too hurt to think about it any longer.

The kwami in his blazer pocket flew out, gave a meaningful look to Nathanael and snuggled closely against the redhead's cheek.

Nathanael's body shook at the comfort and he held Fayy gently to his face.

Fayy had seen her user like this a thousand times before and it hurt her each time he cried like this, but she learned quickly that he did not want to speak about it. He would go to bed, cry himself to sleep and wake up the following morning completely back to normal.

That evening he smiled at the kwami in his hand gently and rested Fayy on his pillow. Fayy could only stare sadly back at her user as he retreated to his bathroom. She sighed, but nevertheless sunk into the pillow and listened to the bathroom door lock shut.

For the first time in ages, she did not hear screams emanate from the bathroom and Fayy could only pray to the greater forces that he would be okay. She _just hoped_ he would be okay.

Meanwhile, Nathanael collapsed to the bathroom floor and the tears and sobs just wracked his entire body.

Chills crawled over his skin and every bit of his being was crumbling again.

All that joy he woke up with that morning was crumbling down again and breathing became hard. He choked and gasped for air.

And it hurt!

It hurt so damn much.

Futilely he clawed at the floor as if it would ground him and stop the pain and the tears, but it did not. It only chipped his nails and tore the skin.

He couldn't breathe now.

With shaking fingers, he managed to open the bathroom cupboard and grab one of the rejected art blades he kept there. He held it in his fist and brought it shakily to his wrist. There, among all the other fleshy scars and failed attempts, he pressed down with the blade.

He bit so hard onto his tongue, blood dripped from his mouth.

He was so tired.

So tired of dragging himself out of bed, suffering endless torture from bullies at school and just… finally giving up on his long-term crush. So tired of the neglect, the insecurities and the work. So tired from all the lack of sleep, so tired of never eating and so lost between all the lines on the canvas of his skin.

The most obvious scar was the one on his stomach.

There, in a manner of mocking himself, he carved in cursive the words "Curse of God". He knew his own name meant to be "Gift from God", but where was the truth?

Where was the truth in that when he had so little?

His parents were never around and his friends had long since abandoned him.

It was getting colder. The tiles…

His tears battered against the floor. Breathing became harder again.

He pushed down.

Blood immediately came gushing out of the vein. The bathroom carpet got stained with tears and blood.

He choked on his tongue and pressed down again.

More blood this time.

He just wanted it to end. He wanted to end his life so badly. What was living if living was just pain?

He could see everyone he knew.

They were smiling. Everyone was smi…

* * *

 **4 years later…**

The redhead glanced down at the city beneath his feet.

After defeating another Akuma, he found himself on the Eiffel Tower, seated next to Ladybug. She herself was battered and tired, but managed to smile.

Chat Noir was resting against one of the tower's pillars.

He was grateful for his newfound friends – to an extent of course.

Trusting them was a whole different story.

He stood up, his body moving against his momentary will.

For a moment, his teammates did not notice him stand, it was only when he chucked his Miraculous down to Ladybug's lap, and did they look up.

There was a moment of surprise and recognition as Nathanael stared at Paris' duo. Chat gasped out his civilian name and Ladybug started yelling profanities – all of them useless in the long run.

He was so close.

Nathanael took a step back.

He slipped.

Ladybug screamed.

He died on impact.


End file.
